Alex Kocent, junior sports administration major, looks up classes to take for his major. But instead of creating his ideal schedule, that dreadful “C” signifying a closed class sometimes appears next to his required classes.

“The availability for my classes for sports administration are all filled up, so I decided to take racquetball and ice hockey to fill up space,” Kocent said.

Academic Adviser Coordinator, Matt Rollyson, said there are a handful of classes students can take to get extra credits.

“From an advisers perspective, we look at that student’s unique situation,” Rollyson said. “We have to talk about how to inquire that situation and base choosing classes from there.”

Professors and advisers feel it’s important for students to take classes in other majors.

Graduate student teaching assistant Laura Cook said the art of theater is the only theater class that students can take without permission, but she highly recommends it.

“I think it’s worthwhile,” she said. “It has to do with history, practical, genre, different plays and multicultural.”

Clinical education coordinator Jeff Huston said he encourages students to take classes that spark their interest, so they don’t wind up dropping them later.

“If I have no rhythm or moves, I’m not going to take ballet,” Huston said. “Just enjoy it.”

Huston said he thinks the one credit hour, basic physical education classes benefit students in terms of exercise and endurance.

“Getting up and getting away is really beneficial for your mind,” he said. “And if it helps taking a yoga class to realize that, I’m all for it.”

Although Kocent has to add extra classes to fill his schedule, he said he doesn’t mind taking them.

“I think it’s beneficial to myself to chill out during the day by taking those classes,” he said. “It’s nice to learn something more about a sport that I enjoy playing recreationally.”

Kenneth Bindas, professor and chair of the history department, said special classes are helpful for students to take when they are interested in a particular subject topic that is not offered in the course catalog.

“Special topics in history are classes that professors use to encourage faculty development,” Bindas said. “They’re a more incisive examination of a particular topic, and of course, they’re fun.”

Bindas said some of the undergraduate special topics classes the history department is offering this spring are Comparative Race Relations, Children and the Holocaust, Contemporary Africa: Political Violence and Democracy, and Central Asia.

Other majors also offer special topics classes, which are designated by an “ST” in front of a class name in FlashLine.

Alexis Burke, junior marketing major, said she plans her schedule ahead of time, so she doesn’t have problems choosing classes not related to her major.

“I would still take classes not required for graduation, though,” Burke said. “If it’s something I’m interested in, I’ll probably do well, and that’ll help my GPA.

Contact news correspondent Samantha Tosado

at [email protected].